A US woman who shot and killed her husband and two adult children before taking her own life is thought to have committed the shocking crime as a result of being ostracised from the religion she was raised in.

A federal judge sentenced a former Arkansas judge Wednesday to five years in prison — a stiffer punishment than prosecutors recommended — after he admitted giving young male defendants lighter sentences in return for personal benefits that included sexual favours.

Every time I tell a mate I’m doing a story on cryptocurrency, they invariably ask me the same two questions: should they invest their own hard-earned money, and which cryptocurrency will get them a Lamborghini/yacht/island quickest?

Dump motorway funds for light rail: Greens

Labor and the coalition need to get over their obsession with motorways, and redirect $2.2 billion of federal funding into light rail, the Australian Greens say.

Greens NSW Senate candidate Cate Faehrmann says that amount of funding - earmarked for privately-owned motorways, such as the Westconnex in Sydney - should go instead to light rail.

She wants $1.7 billion to go to funding the western Sydney light rail network to Parramatta CBD and $500 million to kick-start construction on the first leg of a light rail network from Central to Leichhardt.

"What that means is not putting government funding towards the WestConnex giant lemon," Ms Faehrmann told reporters in Sydney.

Former prime minister Julia Gillard pledged $1.8 billion for the proposed 33km highway in Sydney's west, with a number of conditions.